


The secret

by koukacs



Category: Digimon, Digimon Adventure
Genre: F/M, M/M, a tale of two cousins, couples are more on the background, mainly a family story
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-24
Updated: 2020-07-11
Packaged: 2021-03-04 02:54:15
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 17,265
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24896515
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/koukacs/pseuds/koukacs
Summary: Koushirou's biological mother was the sister of Sora's father, but their parents kept that secret from them for most of their lives. Once the truth starts to come out, how will they react?
Relationships: Ishida Yamato | Matt Ishida/Takenouchi Sora, Izumi Koushirou | Izzy Izumi/Yagami Taichi | Tai Kamiya
Comments: 20
Kudos: 19





	1. The day they left

Toshiko watched, helpless, as Sora ascended with other kids and monsters to the world in the sky. Her daughter was going to risk her life to save a world she had nothing to do with. Toshiko couldn't agree with that. How could she be okay with Sora putting herself in so much danger? But she also couldn't stop her.

Sora had promised her, as she was rising, that she would come back. There was no sign of annoyance or anger in her voice, only concern for Toshiko.

Was Sora going to die? Toshiko couldn't shake that thought off. Was she going to lose her daughter without ever making Sora understand how important she was to her? If only Toshiko had been able to be less closed-off, to be more open with her emotions, to show clearer how she felt... an endless row of missed opportunities flashed before her eyes.

The weight of her regret made Toshiko feel like sinking.

"Could it be...?" A voice she hadn't heard in almost a decade said. "Takenouchi Toshiko-san?"

She turned her head to the left and saw that couple. Izumi Kae and Izumi Masami didn't seem too different from the last time she had met them. What were they doing there?

"Sora-chan... her last name was Takenouchi... I thought it was just a coincidence, but she was your daughter, then..." Kae muttered.

"How do you know my daughter?" Toshiko asked.

"She came to our place a few times with Taichi-kun." Kae explained.

"Why would she do that? How does she know the two of you?" Toshiko was getting impatient.

"Because our son is in her club." Masami said.

"Your son? You can't mean..." Toshiko paled as she understood the situation. "Koushirou? Sora knows him? Is she friends with him?"

"Yes." Kae confirmed. "They seem to get along well, despite not knowing anything..."

"Maybe they get along _because_ they don't know anything," Masami commented, darkly. "If Koushirou were to know what your husband did..."

"Does Koushirou know he's adopted?" Toshiko asked.

"We told him not long before..." Kae said, looking at the mountains in the sky.

"He also went there? Just like Sora?" Toshiko murmured, looking upwards as well.

Those two kids attended the same school, the same club and were both chosen to fight for that other world. What were the odds of all that happening? They were never supposed to meet each other, but fate had brought them together anyway.

"We didn't have time to tell him much." Kae said, scratching her head. "He doesn't even know his biological parents' names yet... or about Haruhiko-san..."

"We're not telling him about that man!" Masami stated.

"Dear, we've talked about this and we agreed-"

"To tell him about his parents, yes! Shunsui and Ame were good people and they loved him, it wasn't their fault that they died! But that man..." Masami had disgust in his voice "... that man abandoned him!"

"It wasn't like that!" Toshiko interjected. "Ame-san's death was too devastating to Haruhiko-san! He couldn't bring himself to take care of her baby, it was just too hard for him!"

"Do you really think that's an excuse?" Masami raised his voice. "He was too sad?! Do you think we weren't sad after our Makoto...?" He bit his lower lip and looked down, trembling. "What would have happened to Koushirou if we weren't there to take care of him? Would that man have just ditched him somewhere?"

"Of course not! I wouldn't allow that!" Toshiko stated. "I would've convinced Haruhiko-san to take that boy in! And if he didn't want to be around him, I would've taken care of Koushirou by myself, like I did with Sora."

She imagined for a moment, like she had done countless times before, how it would have been if she had taken care of Koushirou. Maybe Haruhiko would visit his family even less often. Perhaps Sora would've grown happier for having a kid close to her age to keep her company. Or maybe both children would resent Toshiko. Would she really have been able to raise both kids by herself?

"We know you had good intentions, Toshiko-san. We're not blaming you for anything." Kae comforted her. "Koushirou is a blessing in our lives. Adopting him was the best decision we ever made."

"We love Koushirou more than anything!" Masami said. "I don't want my son to suffer. That's why I don't want him to know that his own uncle didn't want to take care of him. Koushirou doesn't deserve that!"

"But... wouldn't Koushirou and Sora-chan like to know that they're cousins?" Kae inquired.

Toshiko didn't want to hear about any of that topic anymore.

"Why are we discussing this when we don't even know if they're coming back alive?" Toshiko asked. "They could be all dead now. My Sora could be..."

She didn't feel when the first tears fell from her eyes, only noticing that her vision had gotten blurred.

"You have to believe in them." Kae told her. "Trust in your daughter!"

"She's just a kid! This situation, this responsibility... it's too much for her! It's not fair! She can't..." Toshiko protested.

"She promised you she would come back, didn't she?" Masami asked. "Believe in her!"

"How can you two have such blind faith? Aren't you concerned?!"

"Of course we're concerned!" Kae stated. "But we know our son! He's intelligent, resourceful, responsible! He can do this! And he's coming back to us... he promised he would show us that he was okay!"

Masami embraced his wife and they didn't say anything else. Toshiko didn't comment on Kae's soft sobs, muffled by Masami's body.

She had to have faith in Sora. Otherwise, she would break down. _Believe in Sora!_ Toshiko told herself. Her daughter was strong, she even tried to play a game with a hurt leg once. Sora was brave, she had never feared to stand up to her. Sora was so kind...

Toshiko didn't remember if she had ever told her daughter those things. She just assumed that Sora knew or that she should know... no wonder Sora hated her...

That wasn't true. Toshiko knew that.

If Sora hated her, she wouldn't have seemed so distressed when she flew away on her bird friend while her mother was cornered. Sora wouldn't have looked at her with concern while leaving to that world. She wouldn't have promised to come back.

Sora loved her and would return safely because of that. Toshiko had to believe in Sora's love.

 _She will come back!_ Toshiko told herself. And once she returned, Toshiko would tell Sora how much she loved her. She would tell her everything.

Everything...

What would Sora do if she knew that her father had refused to take care of her cousin? That she was related to her friend from the soccer club? Would she hate Haruhiko? Would she hate her mother? Their relationship, that had seemed to begin to get better, would be ruined again? And Sora's relationship with Haruhiko? They had always gotten along. He wouldn't take well to be confronted by Sora. It wouldn't be fair to let him be haunted by a bad decision he had made when he was in despair, a decision she knew he regretted.

"It would be better to everyone if Sora and Koushirou never find out." Toshiko said. "The kids have gone through enough already. They don't need more reasons to suffer."

The three of them agreed to keep that secret.

When they saw the children returning in the flying trolley, any other concern that didn't involve hugging their kids vanished from their minds.


	2. The photo

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Masami and Kae tell Koushirou about his biological parents.

A couple of nights after Koushirou's return from the Digital World, Kae and Masami sat him down on the sofa and told him about his other parents. Kae took the chance to show him a photo of their wedding, the only one they had. Ame and Shunsui were in ceremonial clothes. They were standing next to a placard with their names written on it.

"Her family's name was Fuyokawa, then..." Koushirou muttered, "... his family name being Yukimura... 'Winter River and Snowy Town?'"

"We also found it funny how they both had Winter-related last names," Masami chuckled.

"I joked at the time that they were going to have Winter children," Kae remembered.

"But now I have Izumi as a last name. It's like I became a child of the Spring." Koushirou commented, bemused.

Koushirou didn't take his eyes away from the picture, taking in as many details as he could. He found his mother's silky red hair very beautiful. His father had inquisitive eyes that were just like his. It was strange to see himself in other people like that, but he liked the sensation.

"Were they traditional people?" Koushirou asked. "To have a wedding like this..."

"Ame's sister-in-law organized the wedding, so she was the one who..."

Masami's panicked look made her stop talking. It took a few seconds for Kae to realize what she had said.

They looked at Koushirou with apprehension. The boy didn't lift his eyes from the photo, which he kept holding with trembling hands.

"A sister-in-law...?" Koushirou repeated in low voice. "Then, she had... I have..."

"Sorry for keeping this a secret from you." Kae apologized.

"We wanted to spare you from knowing about that man," Masami explained. "Please, understand. We didn't want you to suffer."

"My uncle..." Koushirou murmured. "He was a closer relative, right? Before you two were asked to adopt me... he was asked first, wasn't he?"

"He was very sad because he had just lost his sister-" Kae began to explain.

"Don't make excuses for him!" Masami interrupted. "That man doesn't deserve this kind of consideration!"

"He didn't want me..." Koushirou said.

"But we wanted you! We love you so much!" Kae stated. "We never wanted to make you sad... I'm so sorry..."

"It's okay," Koushirou told her, lifting his face and showing his parents a sad smile. "I have you two. I'm very grateful for having you two."

"Your uncle has a daughter..."

"Kae!"

"If I already started, I could very well end the subject!" She told her husband, turning to her son next. "She's around your age and attends the same school as you... she's..."

"I don't want to know," Koushirou interrupted, coldly.

"But if you just knew who she is-" Kae insisted.

"I doubt she knows about me," Koushirou said. "I doubt her father told her anything about me at all... maybe he doesn't even remember I exist..."

"Don't concern yourself with that man," Masami told him.

"I'm not concerned. I'm fine..." Koushirou said. "It's okay... he doesn't care about me, why should I know things about him and his family, right? I already have a family... I don't need anything else," Koushirou stood up, "I'd like to keep this picture, if you don't mind."

"Of course you can keep it, it's yours," Masami said.

"Koushirou, you don't have to act as if you're not sad," Kae let him know. "You can talk to us about what you're feeling."

"I'm not sad, I already said that," Koushirou insisted, avoiding his parents' gaze. "I just remembered I still have homework to do... I should get started..."

Kae was about to protest, but Masami gently held her hand and balanced his head. After the boy had closed himself in his room, Kae let go of her husband and covered her face with both her hands.

"I feel so awful!" She said. "Why did I bring that up? I didn't want to... I didn't mean to..."

"I know..." Masami comforted her. "We need to give him some space now. He's going to talk to us if he needs."

"Do you really think so?"

"I... I just hope he will..."

"I thought he'd at least get happier if he knew about Sora-chan..."

"He said that he doesn't want to know. We have to respect that."

The next day, Koushirou woke up very early, before his parents were up. He left a note for them on the kitchen's table, which said that Taichi had asked his help for something.

"Did he at least have breakfast?" Kae asked, after reading the note.

"There must be food in Taichi-kun's place, don't worry," Masami replied, before leaving for work.

Alone in the apartment, Kae went to her son's bedroom. She wondered where he had put the picture of his parents and found it on his desk.

Then, she noticed that his pillow had stains that seemed to be from drops of water.


	3. Koushirou and Taichi

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Koushirou tells Taichi about his family.

Koushirou had barely slept the night before. Tormented by what he had found out, he tried to distract himself with the computer. It worked for a while, but the discomfort still found a way to sneak into his mind. He thought that the best he could do was to try to sleep it off. Surely, it wouldn't feel like such a big issue by the morning.

However, the silence and darkness of his bedroom only made those unwanted thoughts more pervasive.

When the first rays of sunshine broke through the window, Koushirou dreaded the thought of his parents trying to make him talk about how he felt. How many times could he say that he was fine and still sound convincing? He couldn't even look in their eyes when he said that. All Koushirou wanted was to really be fine. He wished he could forget about his uncle rejecting him. He wished he could not feel anything at all for that man.

Koushirou decided to take a walk. People used to say that such a thing could clear one's mind, there should be no harm in trying it. He changed from his pajamas to black shorts and a white shirt. Koushirou was about to leave when he remembered that he should let his parents know that he had gone out. He wrote an excuse for his parents on a note and left the apartment without eating anything. Despite being a summer morning, the air outside felt cold.

He walked for a few minutes, but could not evade those thoughts. Frustrated, Koushirou sat on a bench of a nearby park and stayed there for a while.

 _He didn't want me_ _,_ those thoughts wouldn't stop creeping on him. _He didn't care. He abandoned me._

"Koushirou!"

Taichi's voice pulled him back to reality. The other waved to him, walking towards the bench, where he took a seat next to Koushirou.

"What are you doing up so early, Taichi-san?"

"It's going to sound silly..." Taichi hesitated, "I had a bad dream about Hikari and couldn't go back to sleep."

"I'm sorry about that," Koushirou told him. "Do you want to talk about it?"

"It was about the time she had gone to the hospital," Taichi mumbled. "But in the dream, she didn't make it..."

He glanced down and said nothing else.

"I'm really sorry, Taichi-san. It was just a dream, don't worry about it."

"What about you, Koushirou? Why are you up this early?"

Koushirou looked away for a few seconds. Then, he forced a smirk and looked back at Taichi, replying:

"I'm trying to get something out of my mind as well. Not a nightmare, though."

"Do you want to talk about it?"

"Not really... I... I don't actually know." Koushirou's voice became lower. "I wish I could just stop thinking about it... or at least stop being upset about it..."

They remained in silence for a few seconds.

"Have you eaten breakfast?" Taichi asked. "You could come to my place if you want."

"No, thank you. I'm not really hungry."

"Koushirou... if you have a problem, you know you can tell me, right?" Taichi asked. "I'm your friend."

Koushirou took those words in without saying anything at first.

"You've always been there for me in the Digital World," Taichi told him. "And I don't mean that as just saving our lives with your plans time and time again. You supported me so much... and when Hikari got sick there... I don't think I can ever thank you enough for everything you did that day."

"I didn't really accomplish anything that day," Koushirou said, frowning. "We never gave Hikari-san the medicine. I almost got everybody killed..."

"Hey, you worked really hard! You did your best!" Taichi interjected. "You did a lot more than I could've done!"

"Everything I did that day was pointless."

"Don't say that!" Taichi raised his voice, giving Koushirou a disapproving look. "How many times did I almost get everybody killed because I was being irresponsible? But you don't say those things to me! And yet you're so harsh on yourself! Why?"

Koushirou lowered his head, diverting his gaze from the other.

"I'm sorry for blowing up," Taichi apologized.

"It's okay, don't worry about that. I'm fine."

"I hate it when you say that. You realize I know you're not fine, right?"

"Sorry..."

Taichi sighed, frustrated.

"You're always ready to help me, Koushirou. You've always been like that. Why can't you let me help you, even just once? Don't you... don't you think of me as your friend? Don't you trust me?"

"Of course I trust you, Taichi-san!" Koushirou stated, lifting his head and looking into his eyes. "I wouldn't have supported you as our leader if I didn't trust you!"

"I didn't mean trust me as a leader! I meant trust me as a friend! You..." Taichi hesitated, "I feel like you never let me get close to you. Like... you're always guarding yourself from me, you know?"

"I'm sorry I made you feel that way..." Koushirou said. "To tell you the truth, I've always felt closer to you than to anyone else... then, I suppose I'm not close to anyone..."

Koushirou fought the urge to cry. He didn't want to be bothersome or to make Taichi worry. But the fact remained that the other boy was already worried. And the distance Koushirou kept was the thing bothering him. Koushirou didn't like that distance. Not being able to talk to anyone about his problems made him feel like he was drowning. Taichi wanted to listen, to help, why not be honest with him when Taichi had already been honest with Koushirou? To not do that felt selfish, ungrateful.

"I didn't mean to upset you," Taichi said, getting up. He was about to walk away when Koushirou suddenly said:

"I'm adopted."

"What?" Taichi asked, surprised.

"My biological parents died when I was a baby and my parents adopted me, but before that I had an uncle who didn't want to take me in, but I didn't know he existed until last night when my parents accidentally brought him up," Koushirou was speaking fast, as if afraid he'd lose the courage to reveal all that if he stopped to breathe, "I didn't want to feel upset about that guy, it's so frustrating that I can't stop feeling that way! I love my parents, and I was already in peace with being adopted after we talked and I didn't have to pretend I didn't know anymore! And I feel so stupid for not being able to stop thinking about that man! I don't want to think about him or wonder why he didn't want me! I was a baby, it wasn't my fault that he didn't care about me! Why do I still feel bad about it?!"

Koushirou gasped for air after he stopped talking. He closed his eyes and let a couple of tears roll down. His whole body trembled.

He noticed when Taichi sat again on the bench by his side, but Koushirou didn't open his eyes. Did he say too much? Was that a lot for Taichi?

"Koushirou, I'm so sorry... I had no idea..." Taichi said, in a concerned tone. "For how long have you known?"

"I found out when I was six..." Koushirou mumbled. "I only talked about it with my parents the day we went back to the Digital World... last night they were telling me about my other parents and ended up talking about my mother's brother..."

"For all these years you just kept that to yourself?" Taichi sounded distressed. "For all the time we knew each other... you were suffering in silence by my side all this time and I never noticed?"

"It wasn't your fault, Taichi-san!" Koushirou affirmed, opening his eyes to look at Taichi and noticing that his friend seemed to be on the verge of tears. "I was the one who hid that from everybody! I was the one making myself miserable! Please, don't feel bad for me!"

"I can't avoid feeling bad when I know you're in pain!" Taichi stated.

"I didn't want to make you worry! I shouldn't have told you anything!"

"No! I appreciate that you told me that." Taichi said in a softer tone. "Thank you for trusting me."

Koushirou smiled as he let tears wash his face. Taichi put one arm around his shoulders, which gave him a warm sensation inside his heart.

"For years I was afraid that my biological parents had abandoned me..." Koushirou muttered. "When my parents told me that they had died... that they hadn't left me by their choice... is it bad that I felt some relief?"

"It's not bad," Taichi assured him. "How could it be bad to know that your parents loved you and wanted you?"

"In the end, I was unwanted, after all... my uncle..."

"Hey, it was that guy's loss for not taking you in!" Taichi asserted. "I bet that if he could see you now, he would really regret not taking care of you! Like... he would feel like a dumbass, you know? For passing out the chance of raising the best nephew in the world! He would feel so bad that he'd want to invent a time machine to kick his past self's ass for being such a moron!"

Koushirou took a few seconds to let all that in. Then, he giggled.

"W-What's so funny?" Taichi asked, embarrassed.

"Sorry, it's just..." Koushirou started to say. "What you described is funny, actually! I just imagined him going through all that and... pftttt..."

Koushirou began to laugh and Taichi laughed along.

"My mother was a Physicist and my father was a Mathematician," Koushirou told him, after a while. "If they hadn't died, maybe they could've invented time travel or something else... maybe they could've helped a lot of people..."

"If they were like you, they probably tried to help as many people as possible," Taichi said, smiling at him. "They'd be really proud of you."

Koushirou blushed after hearing that.

"You're too kind, Taichi-san."

"Nah, I'm just telling you the truth!"

"Thank you."

Not long after that, Koushirou started to feel hungry. Taichi invited him to go to his apartment again, but the other boy said that he should go home.

Back at his apartment, Koushirou found Kae frying some eggs.

"You're home already!" She sounded surprised. "Did you have breakfast?"

"No. Would you mind if I-?"

"Of course not! Just wait a minute, the eggs are almost ready."

A couple of minutes later, they were eating together at the kitchen's table.

"Yesterday, when I said I was fine... that wasn't true," Koushirou let her know.

"I thought so," Kae said.

"I'm sorry for lying."

"It's alright," Kae tried to comfort him. "How are you now?"

"I'm still not fine," he replied. "But I'm better. If I keep getting better each day, soon I will be fine."

"That's good to hear," she muttered, smiling at her son. "Koushirou... your uncle..."

"I still don't want to hear about him," Koushirou said. "Please, let's no talk about him again."

"Okay, then..." Kae said back, resigned.

"Thank you."

"So... did you help Taichi-kun out?" Kae asked.

Koushirou smiled to her and replied:

"He was the one who helped me."


	4. Sora and Yamato

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sora is excited that her father is going to spend the New Year with her and Toshiko. At the street, she runs into Yamato.

The streets of Odaiba were filled with people excited for the arrival of the year 2000, but Sora believed she was more excited than they all. Her father was going to spend New Year's Eve with her and her mother; the girl hadn't seen him in a couple of years.

Toshiko wanted to prepare a special dinner and Sora offered to buy the ingredients she needed. The woman showed concern about letting the girl take care of the task alone, but Sora insisted that she could do it.

At that moment, when Sora was struggling to carry four heavy bags of groceries while trying to maneuver in a crowded street during a chilly December afternoon, the girl started to think that maybe she had made a mistake.

 _Don't drop anything! Don't drop anything! Don't drop anything!_ She told herself repeatedly as she started to believe that the task was impossible.

"Sora!" Someone greeted her. She turned around too fast and bumped into Yamato. The grocery bags nearly fell, but he helped to prevent that from happening. They both embraced the four bags, letting their arms touch as they faced each other. Some people giggled at them.

"T-Thank you, Yamato-kun!" Sora said, nervously.

"It's okay, uhmm... let me have two of them."

Without really asking, Yamato took two of the bags and walked alongside Sora.

"You don't have to bother with that," Sora told him.

"It's fine, don't worry," Yamato assured. "I need to carry groceries by myself all the time when I have to make dinner. Not this many bags, though."

"My father is going to spend the New Year with us, my mother is going to make a special dinner," Sora explained.

"Is that so? I'm happy for you," Yamato said, showing her a smile. "Takeru is coming over for the New Year. I spent Christmas with him and Mom."

He glanced down, as if he was feeling awkward. Sora found that endearing.

"Did you have a good time with your mother and your brother?"

"Yes," Yamato muttered as his cheeks got red. "It was very nice..."

"I'm happy you get to spend more time with Takeru-kun so soon," Sora told him. "You and Taichi are lucky for having siblings."

"It is nice to have a little brother, even though I don't get to see him a lot," Yamato murmured. "Don't you have any other kid in your family?"

"My mother is an only child. She mentioned a few times that my father had a little sister who died a long time ago, but I shouldn't ask him about her because it'd make him upset."

"Sorry about that."

"I never met Aunt Ame, there aren't even photos of her around," Sora reminisced, not noticing how sad her voice was turning. "I've always wondered how she was... and if I would get along with her... I don't know anything about her other than that she died and that I shouldn't bring the subject up with my father..."

"How can they act like that? As if she never existed?" Yamato asked, seemingly angry. "If he lost his sister, shouldn't he honor her memory? Or at least keep her photo on a shrine or something?"

Sora didn't comment that remark. Yamato didn't take long to realize he had crossed a line.

"Sorry!" He apologized. "It's not my place to say how your father should mourn... it's just that, I thought about what I'd do if Takeru..."

Yamato stopped talking. Sora noticed how his grip on the bags had intensified. His eyebrows were furrowed and his lips were trembling.

"I made you imagine something upsetting, I'm sorry," Sora told him.

"You didn't do anything wrong," Yamato assured her. "I need to control my emotions better."

"It's okay," Sora said, smiling at him. "I like you the way you are!"

Yamato's face became even redder.

"I..." the boy began to say, "I... to tell you the truth... I also like you the way you are!"

This time, it was Sora who blushed.

"Thank you, Yamato-kun."

When they arrived at her apartment, Sora announced to Toshiko that a friend had helped her to bring the groceries. To Sora's surprise, her mother wasn't in the kitchen or the living room. Toshiko showed up in the corridor, leaving the girl's bedroom.

"What were you doing...?" Sora began to ask, but then she saw her father leaving her bedroom as well and forgot to finish the sentence. The man was looking at her with sadness. He was carrying the framed photo Sora and her friends had taken in the Digital World.

"Your father arrived early," Toshiko explained, looking nervously from her daughter to her husband. "I was telling him about-"

"Your adventures in that other world!" Haruhiko interrupted, forcing a smile. "She didn't give me many details, I can't wait to hear them from you, Sora-chan!"

"Okay..." Sora said, feeling that there was something off with her parents.

Yamato put the bags he had been holding on the floor and said that he should probably leave.

"Thank you for your help, Yamato-kun!" Sora told him, showing the boy a warm smile. "Have a Happy New Year!"

"Thanks," Yamato said, smiling back. "Happy New Year for you too!"

After he left, Sora approached her parents. She noticed that her father was examining the photo, holding it with trembling fingers. His face was pale and sweaty; his eyes shone with tears he wouldn't let fall.

"Are you alright, Dad?" Sora asked, worried.

"Do you get along well with your friends, Sora-chan?" Haruhiko inquired, not taking his eyes off of the picture.

"Yes," Sora replied.

"Do they have good families?" Haruhiko asked. "Are they all... happy?"

"I think so..." Sora said. "Why are you asking me all this?"

"It's not important..." Haruhiko told her, forcing a smile. "I'm going to put this back in your bedroom, okay?"

He turned around and walked away from her. Sora looked at Toshiko, who seemed to be even more worried than she was.

"Mom, what happened to him? Why is he acting like that?"

"Your father is complicated," Toshiko said. "We should start making dinner! He also likes to cook! That should cheer him up!"

"But why is he upset? I don't understand!" Sora insisted.

"Do you want your father to feel worse, Sora?" Toshiko asked.

"No! Of course not!" Sora replied.

"Then, give this subject a rest, please."

Sora did as her mother told her and didn't ask further questions.

An hour later, Haruhiko came to help them with dinner. He seemed to be more lively and asked many questions about the Digital World. Haruhiko shared theories about what he thought the digimon were and seemed rather passionate about those ideas. Although she was still worried, Sora liked to see her father genuinely excited about something.

It didn't take long for her to realize that her father reminded her a bit of Koushirou. Or maybe Koushirou was the one who reminded her of Haruhiko.


	5. Haruhiko and Sora

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> During an afternoon with his daughter, Haruhiko meets Koushirou.

Haruhiko had agreed to spend the summer of 2003 with his family. During his first day in their apartment, he noticed how Sora and Toshiko excitedly whispered about something and stopped talking whenever he approached them. At night, he asked his wife what was going on and Toshiko mysteriously replied:

"Wait until tomorrow. Sora has a surprise for you!"

The next day, during breakfast, Sora nervously asked her father:

"Could you come to the Mall with me today?"

"Oh, sure... is there something you want to buy?" Haruhiko asked.

"Not really, I just..." Sora hesitated.

"She wants to spend a special day with her father," Toshiko explained, smiling. "You two barely see each other. It'd be nice for you two to spend some quality time together."

"Oh..." Haruhiko muttered, feeling a little guilty. Then, he put enthusiasm in his voice and added: "That's a lovely idea!"

Sora beamed at his reply and he smiled as well.

They took the bus to the Mall. It was a hot morning, but Haruhiko chose to wear brown social pants and a long sleeved white shirt with buttons. Sora was wearing jeans and a red shirt with short sleeves. Instead of a hat, she had a clip on her hair.

 _She's so different now... how much of her life have I missed?_ Haruhiko wondered while looking at her. Sitting by his side, Sora was paying attention to the window of the bus.

"It's hot now, but I think it'll rain later," she informed. "There are some black clouds in the sky. We should've brought an umbrella."

"Rain..." Haruhiko murmured. Sad memories passed through his mind. His sister had been named after rain.

"Sorry..." Sora said, turning to him. She had a concerned and guilty look. "I didn't intend to make you think about Aunt Ame..."

"You know about her?"

"Mom told me."

"What did she tell you?"

"That she was your younger sister and that she died... and that you don't like to talk about her because it's too painful for you..."

"It's true that it makes me sad to think about her..." Haruhiko said "... but it doesn't feel right that all you know about her is that she's my dead sister. She was so much more than just that..."

Sora looked at him without saying anything. Haruhiko could tell that she wanted to know more but was afraid of asking.

"Ame was an assistant professor in Tokyo U... she was in the Physics Department..." Haruhiko told his daughter. "Since she was little, Ame wanted to be a scientist... she even practiced doing evil laughs because she thought that was necessary to being a scientist. She never really stopped doing that."

Sora giggled.

"She never really cared about dating as she grew up. I actually settled for the idea that she would never fall in love," Haruhiko continued. "Then, she met a Math professor at work who was almost as nerdy as she was. He was also even more awkward than her, but shared her passion for science and her excitement over everything. Ame had finally met someone who understood her... I don't think she had ever been happier..."

"Did she and the Math professor date?" Sora asked.

"It's a funny story... she told me that, after a couple of weeks of knowing each other, they stayed awake an entire night discussing some theory that... to be honest, I don't remember what it was about... anyway, they talked about it the whole night! By the time the sun was up, she looked straight into his eyes and told him: 'I think I love you! Let's get married!'"

"No way!" Sora exclaimed, excitedly.

"I know, right?" Haruhiko smirked. "She was crazy! But Shunsui was as crazy as she was! They got married the next weekend! Oh, Sora, your mother's reaction to the news was priceless! She insisted they had to have a big traditional wedding and put it upon herself to organize the whole thing! And since Toshiko-san is the most amazing person in the world, she pulled it off! The Yukimura-Fuyokawa wedding even made it to the news back then, mostly because of the prestige of the organizer, I believe. It was a beautiful ceremony..."

Haruhiko noticed that Sora was smiling at him.

"What is it?" He asked.

"All this time, I thought it'd be too painful for you to talk about her... but you seem really happy, Dad! You seem so happy!"

"Do I?" Haruhiko asked, surprised. "Maybe I should tell you more about her, then..."

"I'd like to hear more. Aunt Ame had a lot of initiative when it came to romance!"

"According to her, she knew what she wanted and went through with it."

"I understand the feeling..." Sora said, blushing. "I don't know if Mom told you... last Christmas I confessed to a boy. We're dating now."

"She mentioned that. The groceries' boy, right?" Haruhiko teased.

"H-His name is Yamato-kun! Ishida Yamato-kun!" Sora said, blushing more.

"I know," Haruhiko told her. "Is he good to you?"

"Yes! He's the best!" Sora replied, showing an even bigger smile.

"If he's good to you and makes you happy, I'll support your relationship," Haruhiko assured her.

"Thanks! That means a lot to me!"

Once they arrived at the Mall, Sora insisted that they should go to an ice-cream shop that she always visited with her friends. Haruhiko agreed. As they entered the place, a familiar voice called Sora:

"Hey, Sora! Over here!"

"It's Taichi!" Sora said, going to the table from where Taichi waved to her.

"Hello, Taichi-kun! It's been a while, how have you been?" Haruhiko greeted.

"Nice to see you again! I'm doing great! How about you?" Taichi greeted back.

"I'm doing fine, thank you for asking," Haruhiko replied.

"Did you come here alone, Taichi?" Sora asked, unceremoniously taking a seat across from the boy. Haruhiko followed her and sat beside his daughter.

"Of course not!" Taichi said. "I came with... oh, there he is! Koushirou! I took a table for us!"

That name made Haruhiko feel as if his stomach had dropped. A boy with red hair, wearing a bright orange shirt and brown shorts, came to his side.

"Hello, Sora-san!" Koushirou greeted.

"Hello, Koushirou-kun!" Sora greeted back. "This is my father! His name is Takenouchi Haruhiko."

"Nice to meet you, sir!" Koushirou said, bowing slightly. "My name is Izumi Koushirou!"

Paralyzed, Haruhiko merely stared at Koushirou. That boy's hair, his face, his smile... he looked so much like Ame... he was right there... standing by his side... his nephew...

"Is everything alright, sir?" Koushirou asked, worried.

"Dad, are you feeling ill?" Sora questioned, concerned.

"I-I'm okay..." Haruhiko replied, turning his gaze to the table. "I-It's nice to meet you too..."

Without looking directly at him, Haruhiko noticed when Koushirou sat next to Taichi. The children began to talk about the flavors of ice-creams they wanted. Haruhiko, on the other hand, could only think about the past.

 _"_ _He's Ame-san's child! Your nephew!"_

 _"_ _I can't, Toshiko-san... those other relatives... they can take care of him!"_

 _"_ _But you're his uncle! Your sister would want you to take care of him!"_

 _"_ _I can't... he reminds me so much of her already... it'll only get worse as he grows up... I'll never stop seeing her in him..."_

 _"_ _It's not about you! It's about what's best for Koushirou!"_

 _"_ _I can't do this!"_

"Dad?!" Sora called him. "Are you crying? What happened?"

"I'm sorry... I'm sorry... I can't... I'm sorry..." Haruhiko mumbled, getting up.

"You can't... have ice-cream...?" Taichi asked, confused.

Haruhiko left the table in a hurry. Feeling dizzy, he looked for the exit of the shop.

"Dad, wait!" Sora said, getting up as well.

"We'll go with you!" Taichi offered.

"No, please! This is a family situation, I'll handle it!" Sora asked.

After leaving the shop, Haruhiko found a bench and sat on it. He had difficulty to breathe.

"Dad?" Sora called him, gently, sitting by his side and putting one of her hands over his.

"I'm terrible... I'm awful... I'm such a selfish and horrible person... I'm sorry..." Haruhiko continued to mumble.

"I don't understand, why are you saying these things?" Sora had concern in her voice.

"I knew what Ame would've wanted and I couldn't... because I'm weak... I couldn't do what she wanted me to... I failed her... I failed my family... I'm a horrible brother... I'm a horrible..."

"That's not true! Please, don't say that!" Sora pleaded.

"It's true! You don't know what I did! If you knew, you'd hate me!" Haruhiko insisted.

"I'd never hate you! Don't be ridiculous!" Sora protested.

Haruhiko stayed quiet for a couple of minutes.

"We can go home," Sora suggested.

"I can go home by myself... you should stay here and enjoy the rest of your day..." Haruhiko told her.

"But I want to be with you!" Sora insisted.

"Sora, I don't want to be with anyone right now! I need some space, please!" Haruhiko nearly yelled.

His daughter had a shocked look on her face and small tears appeared on the corners of her eyes. Haruhiko felt terrible for what he had done, but couldn't bring himself to stay with her.

"I'm sorry... I have to go... I'm sorry..."

He left Sora alone on the bench, without looking back.


	6. Disclosure

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The truth comes to surface.

Sora tried to understand what she had done wrong. Her father seemed to be enjoying himself earlier, she was sure of it. When they talked about her aunt, it didn't seem to be too painful for him. Maybe she had misunderstood it all. It was possible that Haruhiko had been hurt since the bus ride and had kept it to himself. He had told Sora those stories because he noticed she wanted to hear them; he faked happiness for her sake while he was crumbling on the inside. Sora should've noticed it. She should've stopped him. How could she let him feed on his misery until he reached a breaking point?

"Sora, where did your Dad go?" Taichi's voice came from behind her. She didn't want to turn around and just remained silent. Then, Taichi sat by her side on the bench. "Did he have to go to the restroom or...?"

"He wanted to go home by himself," Sora explained. "He wasn't well..."

"Was he sick?" Koushirou asked, standing by her side.

"No, he was just sad about something," Sora said.

"He was sad and then just ditched you?" Taichi sounded perplexed. "Who does something like that?"

"Don't criticize him!" Sora interjected, annoyed at her friend's insensitivity. "You don't know what he's been through!"

"He didn't mean to offend your father, Sora-san," Koushirou defended the other boy in a gentle tone. "Taichi-san might've expressed himself badly, but he was just concerned about you. He cares a lot about his friends!"

Taichi smiled at that statement

"You're right..." Sora said, feeling self-conscious. "I think I was taking out my frustration on you, Taichi. Sorry about that."

"Don't apologize, that was my fault," Taichi told her."I should've thought more before speaking..."

"I believe I'm the one who owes an apology to you and your father, Sora-san..." Koushirou said, suddenly.

"Eh?" Taichi was confused.

"What are you talking about?" Sora asked, also trying to understand.

Koushirou looked down.

"He was bothered by my presence, I could tell..." he said. "Your father looked at me in a strange way when I arrived, as if he had seen a ghost. Then, it was like he was trying really hard not to look at me..."

"You're just imagining things, Koushirou!" Taichi dismissed, with a laugh. "Mr. Takenouchi had never met you before today! What reason would he have to dislike you?"

"Maybe I've offended him somehow! Or perhaps something about my appearance bothered him!" Koushirou theorized.

"You were polite and delightful the whole time!" Taichi protested. "And what are you even saying about your appearance? You look amazing!"

Koushirou's face turned bright red at the comment. Taichi blushed slightly after a couple of seconds. Sora giggled. Her friends could be adorable around each other sometimes. She wondered if they knew the reason behind that.

"Taichi is right, Koushirou-kun," she said. "You're definitely not the reason why my father was sad. I was the reason..."

Sora could feel her friends' gazes on her. It wasn't easy to talk about it, but she didn't want them to misunderstand the situation and blame themselves for something that had been her fault.

"My father used to have a little sister... she died in a car crash a long time ago," she began to narrate. "Her death was devastating to my father... he doesn't keep pictures of her nor does he usually talk about her... until today, when it was raining... her name was Ame, you know..."

Koushirou raised his eyebrows when he heard that name.

"I see... she was named 'Rain' so rain reminds him of her..." Taichi commented. "I'm so sorry that happened, Sora. To lose a little sister is so..."

Taichi had a pained expression. Sora guessed that he was probably remembering the time when he almost lost his own sister and felt bad for making her friend sad.

"Do you... know anything about your aunt, besides her name?" Koushirou asked in a hesitant voice.

"My father told me things about her today, for the first time," Sora replied. "I didn't ask him to do it... but I didn't stop him. I should've stopped him! I should've known it was going to make him suffer!"

"Sora, it was his choice to tell you things about her!" Taichi told her. "You're not responsible for other people's decisions!"

"But I should've been more thoughtful!" Sora insisted. "I got carried away hearing about how she was a scientist who worked in Tokyo U and how she fell in love with a Math professor and my Mom organized their wedding... it just... it all sounded so cute! And Dad looked so happy telling that story... he was smiling and all... but he wasn't happy... he was just putting up a front for my sake!"

Sora broke down in tears. Taichi didn't know what to tell her or how to comfort her. He looked at Koushirou, silently asking for help, but the other boy didn't seem to be paying attention to his surroundings. Koushirou's face was pale and covered in sweat. His eyebrows were furrowed and his lips were trembling. Taichi could tell that there was something off about him.

"It's not Sora-san's fault..." Koushirou murmured, suddenly.

"Of course it is!" Sora protested. "He was sad because..."

"He only thought about his own feelings..." Koushirou continued, looking down. His tone of voice got darker as he went on. "He didn't consider how his actions would affect you... how you'd feel after being..." the boy clenched his fists, "...he didn't think about you at all..."

Those words hit Sora deeply. Koushirou had a point. During her life, Sora barely had the chance to spend time with her father. When he came for an extended visit, she went through the trouble of planning activities for an entire day for the two of them. She had been looking forward to that day for so long and then her father simply ditched her after their first stop! Even if he was sad, he didn't take into account her feelings at all! Sora was sure that most parents wouldn't do such a thing. Her mother definitely wouldn't!

"Hey, Koushirou, don't say such awful things to her now! Sora is already sad enough!" Taichi scolded him.

"No! Koushirou-kun is right!" Sora stated, getting up. "Why am I defending Dad this much when he was the one who abandoned me in the Mall during the father-daughter day I had planned for months? We didn't even get to go to the movies or the park... we didn't even get the ice-cream! He just left me here and went home without giving me an explanation!"

"Wow, you're mad... I haven't seen you mad in a really long time..." Taichi commented, shocked.

Sora took a deep breath.

"I need to have a serious talk with my Dad!" Sora announced, walking away. "Thank you, Koushirou-kun!"

"Wait!" Taichi called her, but Sora didn't turn back. "Koushirou!" Taichi said, getting up and facing the other boy. "What was that all about? What you told her wasn't like you at all! You got Sora all fired up! What are you going to do if she has an argument with her Dad?"

Koushirou didn't lift his head to look at Taichi.

"I need to go home now, Taichi-san," he said, turning around.

Taichi held him by the wrist.

"What's the matter with you?" Taichi questioned. "Why are you acting weird? What happened?!"

Koushirou forcibly freed his wrist from Taichi's grip. In a cold tone that the other boy had never heard, he said:

"Nothing happened, Taichi-san! I'm fine!"

Those words froze Taichi at his tracks. He watched, silently, as Koushirou left him.

* * *

Once Sora arrived at her apartment, she found both her parents waiting for her in the living room. They were sitting side by side on pillows behind the short table. Haruhiko had a guilty expression. Toshiko seemed apprehensive.

Sora took off her shoes and went to the living room, where she sat across from her parents. Her anger had already cooled down by the time she got into the apartment, but her determination didn't falter.

"Your father told me how he behaved today and I reprehended him," Toshiko let her daughter know. "But just doing that is not enough to compensate for what he did."

"I want to understand what happened," Sora said. "You caused a scene there, Dad! Koushirou-kun even thought he had done something wrong!"

Haruhiko flinched after hearing that name.

"I had agreed to keep that secret but I can't do it anymore. Not after today," Toshiko said, giving Sora a guilty look.

"Please, Toshiko-san..." Haruhiko pleaded.

"No. I'm done with pampering you, Haruhiko-san! Sora has the right to know!"

"Know what?" Sora asked, getting anxious.

Toshiko took a few seconds before answering:

"Ame-san and her husband had a son... a baby that survived..."

"A baby...?" Sora murmured. "Wait... I have a cousin? And you're only telling me this now? Where is he?"

"He was raised by Shunsui-san's relatives... his cousin and his wife adopted the baby."

"Her husband's cousin? B-But Dad was her brother!" Sora interjected. "Why wouldn't he be asked first to-"

"Haruhiko-san was asked first." Toshiko clarified. "He refused to take care of the child."

Sora felt horror filling her heart.

Her father had abandoned her cousin? He had refused to take care of his own nephew? Sora couldn't understand how he could've done such a horrible thing. That was inconceivable!

"I... I just couldn't bear to be around him... he reminded me too much of her..." Haruhiko tried to defend himself. "If I had taken that child in, I'm sure I would've lost my sanity... I mean... just think about what happened today... just from being in his presence... to look at him, to hear his voice... it was too much for me!"

"What are you... talking about...?" Sora asked, afraid of putting the pieces together. She remembered a comment Koushirou had made but shot that thought down immediately. It couldn't be that! She knew Koushirou's parents! The boy had never said anything about being...

"After the adoption, I didn't see Shunsui-san's relatives for almost ten years," Toshiko began to talk again. "We met again in the most unlikely situation... Masami-san almost begged me not to tell you kids anything. He didn't want his son to know what Haruhiko-san had done... he didn't want Koushirou-kun to suffer."

The lingering fear Sora had tried to ignore proved to be true.

"When I saw Koushirou today, all grown-up... that red hair, that smile... everything about him..." Haruhiko murmured as tears filled his eyes. "I couldn't face him... I just couldn't..."

Feeling overwhelmed, Sora stood up quickly and nearly turned the table over.

"Sora, are you alright?" Toshiko asked, worried.

Sora couldn't answer that question. She rushed to her room and locked herself inside. Then, she slid against the door until she was sitting on the floor. Her heart was beating so fast... the air felt so heavy... she thought she was going to pass out...

Suddenly, her cellphone began to ring. She tried to decline the call, but answered it instead, by accident.

"Sora! It's Yamato! Taichi called me and told me what happened. Is everything okay? How are you?"

Something about Yamato's voice had the power to bring her comfort. Sora was sure that, if there was someone who could help her to make sense of her feelings, that person was Yamato.

Among sobs, she told him everything.

* * *

Kae was watching television in the living room when she heard the door open.

"Is that you, Koushirou?" She asked. "You're home early! I thought you and Taichi-kun were going to spend the day together!"

Getting worried about the lack of answer, she got up and went to the door where she found her son still holding the knob. He hadn't even taken off his shoes yet.

"Sora-san was in the ice-cream shop..." Koushirou muttered.

"Oh... is that so?" As she always did when Sora was brought up in a conversation, Kae tried to act naturally.

"She told us a story about her aunt Ame, who was a scientist and married a Math professor..." Koushirou said in a weak voice, still not turning around to face his mother. "Her aunt Ame worked in Tokyo University and died in a car crash... those things aren't just coincidences, are they?"

Kae trembled as she realized that her son had figured out the truth.

"Ever since I found out that Sora-chan was your cousin, I wanted to tell you! I wanted to tell you so badly!" Kae had an apologetic tone.

"But I didn't let you. I didn't want to know." Koushirou's voice was low and almost not audible.

"Koushirou, I'm so sorry!" Kae apologized.

"Please, don't be sorry. It wasn't your fault." Koushirou assured.

"But to find out like this... you must be feeling terrible!" Kae said.

"I'm not feeling terrible. I'm fine!" Koushirou stated, turning around and showing his mother a reassuring smile that was clearly being forced. "Everything is fine! There's nothing to worry about!"

The boy went to his bedroom without saying anything else.

 _Just say something..._ Kae pleaded in her thoughts, feeling her heart breaking. _Say anything... don't just keep it to yourself! Please!_

  
  



	7. Yamato and Sora, Taichi and Koushirou

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In a time of crisis, Sora and Koushirou talk to their loved ones.

By the time Sora finished telling Yamato the whole story, the many tears that had rolled down her face had fallen on her shirt, getting it wet. The hand that had been shakingly holding the cellphone was steady at that moment. Yamato didn't interrupt her during any part of her narration. He waited until she had let it all out to talk:

"I think I understand now why your father doesn't keep pictures of his sister," Yamato told her. "He must've been so ashamed of what he did that he couldn't face her in any way."

"Is this why it was so hard for him to look at Koushirou-kun?" Sora wondered.

"When you do something awful... something selfish that hurts other people... because you were so overwhelmed by your own emotions that you just couldn't see how your actions would affect others..." Yamato's voice vacillated, as if he was struggling with the words. "Once you realize how terrible you were... the guilt, the shame... the fear that nobody would be able to forgive you..."

Sora could easily read between Yamato's lines. She knew what memories must've resurfaced in his mind to haunt the boy and could not allow him to be trapped in that descending spiral.

"We forgave you, Yamato-kun," Sora assured him. "We all forgave you!"

"I attacked Taichi... I let our partners fight each other and get hurt... I put you all in danger because of my own issues with my self-worth! And then..." Yamato's voice broke "I left you... Takeru, you, everybody else..."

"I supported you through that, remember?" Sora asked. "You needed time and space to figure yourself out and I knew that, once you did it, you'd come back to us. And not only that, you even rescued me from a cave... a terrible person wouldn't have done that."

Yamato remained silent for a couple of seconds. When he spoke again, his voice was more cheerful:

"Just because people can make terrible mistakes, it doesn't mean they're bad people."

"I believe in that too," Sora said. "I don't think my father is a bad person... but he believes so firmly that he is terrible and unforgivable that he doesn't confront his mistakes... he doesn't try to make amends or to fix anything..."

"Someone that messes up that badly has to put in the effort to get better... to be better to his loved ones..." Yamato told her.

"If my father could put at least half of your effort, it would be great," Sora said. She heard Yamato smirk in response.

"So... do you think Koushirou knows he's adopted?" Yamato asked.

"I don't know..." Sora replied. "I should find out about that first... before dropping on Koushirou-kun the news that I'm his cousin and that my father..."

"Once he knows, your relationship with him will change forever..." Yamato told her. "The two of you will be family. Maybe it'd be a good idea to drop the honorifics with one another."

"I don't think I ever heard Koushirou-kun talking to anyone without honorifics. It would be so hard for him! Can you imagine?" Sora said, giggling at the idea.

"Okay, then. But even if you don't drop honorifics immediately, you could still get to know each other better. Once Takeru started to live closer to me, we talked a lot more. Did you know that his favorite movie is '2001: a space odyssey?' I would never have guessed that in my entire life!" Yamato let her know.

"To be fair, there's a chance Takeru-kun only picked that movie to impress you!" Sora theorized.

"That's definitely a possibility!" Yamato agreed.

They both laughed.

"Thank you for calling me, Yamato-kun."

"I'm happy I could help. You can talk to me whenever you need."

"You too!"

After that, they ended the call.

Sora stood up and wiped away the remaining tears on her face. She felt so much lighter that she believed she could float.

She opened the door and went to the living room. Her parents were discussing in low voice and immediately stopped when they saw her.

"Sorry for leaving like that," Sora apologized, sitting across from them. "I was a bit overwhelmed..."

"There's no need to apologize, Sora. We understand," Toshiko assured her.

"Sora... do you... how do you feel about me now?" Haruhiko asked in an anxious tone.

"As I've told you earlier today, Dad, I could never hate you," Sora replied, showing him a smile. "But I am disappointed at you."

"I understand," Haruhiko said, looking down. "I hope one day I can earn your forgiveness..."

"It's not my forgiveness the one you should be worried about earning," Sora told him. "It's Koushirou-kun's."

Haruhiko turned livid.

"I can talk to him first," Sora suggested. "He has the right to know the truth... it would be better if I prepared him before letting the two of you talk. I don't even know if he knows that he's adopted..."

"He knows," Toshiko informed. "When I talked to the Izumis, they told me that he already knew. But they didn't plan to tell him about Haruhiko-san. Masami-san was adamantly against the idea."

"At least he knows about the adoption. It'd be really out of place of me to be the one to let him know about that..." Sora sighed.

"Is it really a good idea to let him know about me?" Haruhiko wondered. "It'd hurt him to know what I did..."

"Is that what you're really afraid of, Haruhiko-san?" Toshiko questioned. "Or are you afraid of him rejecting you?"

Haruhiko didn't answer.

"Instead of focusing so much on fear, why don't we focus on hope?" Sora suggested. "It'd be a shock in the beginning, but Koushirou-kun is a reasonable person. He's intelligent, kind and curious! I'm sure he'll want to talk to you eventually, Dad! He could visit us more and I could visit him more! We would all be family!"

Toshiko and Haruhiko gave Sora sad looks. _They don't believe me..._ the girl thought. She didn't want to feel discouraged and was afraid that could happen if that conversation continued.

"I'll show you that things are going to turn out okay," Sora told them, getting up. "I'm heading to Koushirou-kun's place."

"Sora, please, reconsider it!" Toshiko asked. "You're being precipitated and setting your hopes too high!"

"You shouldn't underestimate how badly he's going to take the news," Haruhiko advised his daughter. "There's no way Koushirou isn't going to hate me for the rest of his life!"

"You don't know Koushirou-kun, Dad!" Sora stated. "But I do!"

After saying that, Sora left.

* * *

After calling Yamato and asking him to talk to Sora, Taichi thought about what he should do with Koushirou. The boy's cold behavior had shocked him, but Taichi had recovered and was ready to tackle the problem.

He decided that the best course of action was to talk to him directly. Taichi headed to Koushirou's place, determined to make the other boy open up to him.

When he knocked on the apartment's door, Mrs. Izumi opened it and gave him a surprised look.

"Good afternoon, Mrs. Izumi," Taichi greeted. "I really need to talk to Koushirou!"

"Taichi-kun, I'm not sure if now is the best time..." she had an evasive tone.

"I know that he's upset but I don't know why. I need to talk to him, so I can help him out!" Taichi insisted. "Please, Mrs. Izumi! I need to talk to him!"

"Mom? Who's at the door?" Koushirou asked, coming through the corridor. When he saw Taichi, he gave his friend a confused look.

"Is there something wrong, Taichi-san?" Koushirou inquired.

"I'm the one who should be asking you that!" Taichi told him. "There's something bothering you ever since Mr. Takenouchi freaked out at the ice-cream shop!"

After hearing that, shock took over Mrs. Izumi's face. She immediately turned to her son, who seemed mortified.

"You met Haruhiko-san?" she asked in a nervous voice. "Did he say something bad to you, Koushirou? Did he do something?"

"Mom, please, don't worry!" Koushirou pleaded. "He barely talked to me and left really soon! I didn't tell you because I didn't want to worry you over nothing."

"Over nothing?!" Mrs. Izumi nearly yelled. "If it had really been nothing, you wouldn't have lied to me!"

"I didn't... Mom, please, can we not talk about this right now?" Koushirou asked, looking from his mother to Taichi.

She realized what she was saying in front of her son's friend and gave Koushirou an apologetic look.

"We can talk about this later..." Mrs. Izumi said, leaving them alone as she headed to the living room, bearing a look of guilt.

Instead of inviting Taichi to enter, Koushirou put on his shoes and went outside, closing the apartment's door behind him.

"Koushirou... what just happened?" Taichi asked. "Why would your mother react like that because of Mr. Takenouchi?"

Koushirou rested his back against the door and closed his eyes. He took a few deep breaths, as if trying to keep his calm.

"Why are you here, Taichi-san?"

"I wanted to check on you, I was worried! I know there's something wrong, please, tell me what it is!"

Koushirou remained quiet for a few seconds. Then, he opened his eyes and gave Taichi an exhausted look.

"I don't want to talk about it now, Taichi-san."

"So you admit that there's something wrong! What is bothering you?"

"I just told you I don't want to talk about it!" Koushirou was losing his patience.

"But you have to talk! It's not good for you to keep things for yourself!"

"Please, don't tell me what's good for me."

"I know that you'll feel better after talking about it! Remember that time at the park when you told me about your uncle? You seemed so relieved afterwards-"

"Stop talking, please!" Koushirou nearly shouted, startling Taichi.

"Koushirou...?" Taichi muttered, noticing that his friend had begun to tremble and how pale his face was turning. Koushirou had closed his eyes again and kept his head down. He crossed his arms, as if trying to make them stop shaking.

"I can't talk about this now! I can't talk about him now! Why can't you just leave me alone?!" Koushirou questioned.

"I can't let you suffer in silence anymore!" Taichi stated. "Ever since that day at the park, ever since you told me those things... I've been so happy thinking that you trusted me, that you would tell me anything... that you would stop saying that you're fine when you clearly aren't... and then, today, you suddenly put the walls up again and I have no clue about why you did that! I have no idea why you don't trust me anymore!"

"This isn't about you, Taichi-san!" Koushirou affirmed, opening his eyes and glaring at the other. "I need space now! I need time alone to think things over!"

"But I can help you with that!" Taichi insisted. "I know that if we're together-"

"You know nothing!" Koushirou shouted. "You can't possibly understand what I'm going through! You can't even put together why I'm like this now!"

"Seriously? You're mad at me because I can't read your mind?" Taichi was losing his cool. "It's you who's refusing to talk to me!"

"It's not about reading minds! It's about paying attention to what people say to you! Like you claim to have listened to what I told you at that park!"

"Of course I paid attention!" Taichi protested. "I listen to every word you say! I always did!"

"Then, how much more obvious would Sora-san have to be for you to figure it out? Would she have to say that her scientist aunt and her mathematician husband could've invented time travel had they not died?! Would she have to say that they had a baby and that her father abandoned him?! Then, would you understand?!"

After hearing that, all the pieces came together in Taichi's mind. Nevertheless, he couldn't accept that reality.

"It can't be... Mr. Takenouchi couldn't have... he would never..." Taichi muttered. "He's... he's a good guy..."

"My mother confirmed it," Koushirou said in low voice. "I guess you were wrong when you said that if he could see me now..." his voice broke and a couple of tears fell from his eyes "... he couldn't even look at me... he couldn't bear to be in my presence for more than two minutes..."

Taichi wasn't able to say anything. To see Koushirou crying broke his heart.

"And you know what the funny part is?" Koushirou inquired. "I've wanted to meet Mr. Takenouchi for a while... ever since he helped Miyako-kun in Kyoto... and then he helped with the dark spore kids... I had this impression of him... I thought he was an intelligent and caring person... and today when I saw him at our table, I got excited... I thought I'd finally get to meet him and talk to him about the Digital World and the digimon and so many other things but..." more tears escaped his eyes and he began to sob "...he never wanted to meet me... he never wanted... me... I'm so stupid! I'm such a moron!"

Taichi couldn't stay still anymore. He pulled Koushirou to a tight hug. The other boy tried to resist at first but gave up quickly. Koushirou cried loudly against Taichi's chest. Taichi caressed his head as he searched for words that could comfort the other boy.

"Why did he have to be good?" Koushirou asked, among sobs. "If only he had really been a bad person, like I used to imagine... it wouldn't hurt this much..."

"I'm so sorry!" Taichi said, ashamed that he couldn't think of other things to say. "You don't deserve this! You don't deserve any of this! That guy... he's not worthy of you!"

A new feeling was invading Taichi's heart and burying the good memories he had from other encounters with Sora's father. Gone was the nerdy shy man with a sad smile. In that instant, Taichi could only think of Takenouchi Haruhiko as the responsible for causing immense pain to his beloved friend.

Koushirou was Taichi's only concern at the moment, he couldn't see nor think of anything else. Because of that, he didn't notice when Sora arrived during the beginning of their argument and awkwardly hid herself in a corridor that led to the building's staircase. She didn't want to invade their privacy, but it was as impossible for her not to listen to what they were saying as it was for her not to cry.

  
  



	8. Takenouchi and Izumi

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Koushirou decides that he wants to talk to Haruhiko.

After returning to the apartment, Sora went straight to her room. Toshiko and Haruhiko were making dinner and didn't have the chance to say anything to their daughter as she passed quickly by the kitchen's entrance.

"It seems that things went badly, just like I thought," Haruhiko sighed.

"Go to her!" Toshiko told him.

"She must be upset and it's my fault!"

"I know. But the two of you need to have a proper conversation, for the sake of you both!"

Haruhiko did as his wife said. He knocked on Sora's door and asked if he could enter. There was no answer, so he excused himself and went in anyway. She was sitting on the floor, close to the window, with her back against the wall. Sora was hugging her legs and hiding her face behind them. Haruhiko could hear her sobbing.

He walked towards her, passing by her desk, which had some of his books on it. There were a few from before he had married Toshiko, back in the time when his family name was Fuyokawa. Haruhiko still remembered when he told his sister that he was going to adopt his wife's family name because she was an Ikebana master. Ame smiled and joked about him marrying someone who was a lot better than him.

The picture of Sora and the other chosen children was still on the desk, on the same place where he had seen it years before. That was the first time he had seen his nephew since his sister's death. Koushirou seemed to be a healthy and happy kid. Haruhiko tried to take solace from the fact that the boy had been fine without him. Maybe he was even better than he would've been if raised by his uncle. That was, of course, just one of the lies he told himself through the years to ease his guilt.

Haruhiko sat in front of Sora, crossing his legs. He searched for the right words to say.

"I'm so sorry! Sora, I... I'm sorry if I ruined your relationship with him. Was... was the argument too bad?" He asked, nervously.

"I never talked to Koushirou-kun, he didn't even notice I was there..." Sora informed. "I saw him talking to Taichi. Koushirou-kun had figured out everything already... he was talking about how you never wanted him... Dad, he was crying! He was crying so much! I had never seen him cry like that!"

Haruhiko felt as if his heart was being ripped apart. What had he done to that kid? Ame's son, his own nephew... how could he make him suffer like that? And now he was making his daughter suffer.

"I was a coward... and weak..." Haruhiko admitted. "I was so consumed by my grief that I ran from my responsibilities. All of this pain was caused by my own selfishness."

"It's true," Sora stated, lifting her head to look at her father. Her eyes were red and still filled with tears. "What are you going to do about that?"

"What is there to do? If I were to talk to him, I would just make him sadder..."

"Then, are you just going to avoid him for the rest of your life and let him feel rejected?" Sora inquired. "Are you going to continue to lament about your mistakes instead of doing something, anything, to help Koushirou-kun feel better?"

"Do you want me to go to him and talk to him?" Haruhiko asked. "What would I even say to Koushirou? I don't know how to make him feel better! I don't even know him!"

He noticed how harsh and defensive his tone of voice was and felt ashamed. Haruhiko sounded like an emotionally unbalanced and immature person, instead of a proper adult and responsible parent. He had to keep his calm and listen to Sora instead of making up excuses for his behavior.

"Don't you want to know him?" Sora asked. "Aren't you even slightly curious about Koushirou-kun?"

"There hasn't been a day when I didn't wonder about how he was like..." Haruhiko replied. "I thought about how much he should be like Ame... I saw so much of her when I first looked at that picture on your desk... and then, today, when I looked at him... when I heard him for the first time... he reminded me so much of her... all the guilt I've been carrying hit me at once and I felt like I was drowning in despair, just like that day when she..."

"Koushirou-kun is his own person," Sora informed her father. "He's not a copy of aunt Ame! You shouldn't see him like that!"

 _But I don't know how to see him_ _..._ Haruhiko thought. He knew nothing about that boy. Since his sister was his only reference, she was all he could see in Koushirou. Perhaps, if he knew more about his nephew, the agony of recognizing Ame in the boy wouldn't be so great.

"How is he like?" Haruhiko asked.

Sora stayed quiet for a few seconds. When she talked again, the girl had a little smile on her face.

"Koushirou-kun is extremely intelligent. He works hard... and was always trying to help everybody in the Digital World with his plans... he saved us more times than I can count... he was very excited about learning new things, but he also got serious when the situation demanded... most of the time he was polite and kind, although he could be awkward around people at times... when under stress, he could be quite blunt... but I could tell that Koushirou-kun always tried his best... he still does..."

"He sounds like a good kid..." Haruhiko whispered. "Ame was kind of a brat growing up, so he probably took after his father's side of the family."

Sora giggled at the comment, which warmed her father's heart.

"Since before knowing the truth, I found Koushirou-kun similar to you," Sora told Haruhiko. "You're both intelligent and like to learn and theorize about things... I used to think that you two would have a great time if you were to talk to each other... from what I heard from his conversation with Taichi, he also believed in that..."

"I wonder if he would still want to talk to me and see me..." Haruhiko muttered. "Koushirou must hate me..."

"I can't imagine Koushirou-kun hating anyone," Sora told her father. "He's heartbroken now... but in the future..."

"When he's ready to talk to me, I'll apologize for all the things I've done... I'll probably spend hours apologizing to him..."

"You should do that," Sora said, smiling.

Haruhiko smiled as well. A spark of hope appeared in his heart. Maybe, after 13 years of guilt, he would finally be able to make amends with his nephew and his sister.

* * *

"I could spend the rest of the day with you... even the night..." Taichi offered, visibly worried.

"It's okay, Taichi-san, I'm feeling better now," Koushirou assured him, wiping away the remaining tears from his face. "Thank you..."

"You're not lying again, are you?" Taichi asked.

Koushirou looked into his eyes in a serious way.

"I promise I will never lie to you again, Taichi-san. For as long as I live, I will always be honest with you."

Taichi blushed slightly at the statement and then showed Koushirou a large smile.

"I'll always be honest with you too, until the day I die..." Taichi told him. His smile slowly vanished. "Koushirou, there's something that I've wanted to tell you for a while now, but I never found the best way or the best time... and I don't think today is the best time either..."

"Is there something wrong, Taichi-san?" Koushirou was concerned.

"It's not a bad thing! It's a good thing! It's about how I feel about you..." Taichi's face turned red. "I want to tell you about how important you are to me and how much I respect and cherish you... and how happy I am to have you in my life... when I tell you, I want it to be a happy day and I want to plan something special..."

Koushirou could feel his heart beating faster and his face getting warmer. He intuited what Taichi wanted to tell him and wished he could just say it at once. However, Koushirou didn't want the day when he heard _that_ from Taichi to be the same day when he had learned the truth about Sora's father. Koushirou also wanted a special and happy day to listen to Taichi's confession.

"It's okay, Taichi-san. I'll wait!" Koushirou assured him. "But I want you to know that, when you're ready to tell me what you want to tell me, I think I'll probably tell you the same thing!"

Taichi blushed even harder after hearing that.

"I really don't deserve you, Koushirou!"

"I'm the one who doesn't deserve you!"

"No, it's me!"

"What's going on?" Izumi Masami inquired. He, who had just arrived from work and found the two boys talking outside the apartment, was trying to understand why his son had the largest smile he had ever seen but also looked like he had cried a lot.

"Y-Y'ou're home early!" Koushirou exclaimed, startled, turning to his side to see his father.

"We had a rat situation at the office and... well, I can explain that later," Masami said.

"I have to go now, Koushirou. See you soon!" Taichi said, walking away.

"Good-bye, Taichi-san! Thank you for everything!"

After Taichi left, Koushirou opened the door and invited his father to enter.

"Did something happen today?" Masami asked.

"Yes..." Koushirou replied. "I need to talk about it with both you and Mom. If you don't mind, I'd like to go to the restroom for a bit, to wash my face."

"Oh, of course," Masami agreed.

He went to the living room, where Kae was watching television. When she saw Masami, she turned the TV off and told him, anxiously:

"Koushirou knows about Haruhiko-san! He met him today!"

Shocked, Masami let his briefcase fall on the floor. He sat on the couch, next to his wife.

"What happened? What did that bastard say to our son? Is he the reason why he was crying?" Masami asked.

"So he really was crying... Koushirou and Taichi had a discussion, I could hear some of it... Koushirou was really distressed..."

"I'm going to kill that man!" Masami roared. "If he broke my son's heart, I'm going to kill him!"

"Don't be absurd, you don't even know where he lives!"

"I'm going to find him and then I'm going to kill him!"

"Please, don't kill Sora-san's father," Koushirou asked, entering the living room. "I don't want to make her sad, she's a good person!"

"Masami didn't really mean what he said," Kae assured her son.

"Koushirou, what happened?" Masami asked. "What did that man do?"

"As I told Mom earlier, he didn't really do much. He saw me, freaked out and then left the ice-cream shop. Then, Sora-san told us a story about her aunt Ame and I figured the rest out. Taichi-san came here to check on me and... I got a little emotional..." Koushirou blushed slightly, "I cried a bit but I feel better now. I promise!"

Masami and Kae felt more at ease after hearing that. Koushirou's reassuring smile helped.

"I'm sorry you found out like that," Masami told him. "I wanted to protect you from knowing about that man. But maybe... if I had told you the truth sooner, it wouldn't be so hard for you now."

"I didn't want to hear about him sooner, it's not your fault," Koushirou said. "I'm not mad at anyone."

"Koushirou, you know it's okay to have bad feelings towards Haruhiko-san, right?" Kae asked. "He hurt you. It's okay to be mad at him."

"That's right, Koushirou! You're entitled to be angry at that man after what he did!" Masami agreed.

Koushirou stopped smiling. He had a sad look.

"Sora-san told us about how broken he was over his sister's death..."

"That doesn't excuse him from abandoning you!" Masami stated.

"I know!" Koushirou said. "But it's not like he's a villain or anything... he even helped us with digimon-related stuff..."

"You don't have to make excuses for him!" Kae affirmed.

"I'm just trying to be reasonable-" Koushirou began.

"You don't have to be reasonable about this!" Kae stated. "You're a child! It's okay to be angry and to throw a tantrum! You can cry, shout, express your feelings in any way you need! Don't worry about being reasonable or fair right now!"

"But I don't want to be angry or to hate him!" Koushirou stated, raising his voice. He then took a deep breath before start talking again, in a calmer tone: "I just want to understand... and I can't really do that unless I talk to him..."

Masami and Kae paled and exchanged concerned looks.

"Dear, we want to support you but..." Kae began to say, looking down.

"That man could say something horrible to you," Masami said, in a calm but firm voice. "If you talk to him, you could get even more hurt than you already are. Please, don't put yourself through that. Just forget about him."

"I can't forget about him!" Koushirou affirmed. "Until I hear his explanation I'll keep theorizing awful things that will only make me feel worse! If I talk to him and it goes badly... at least, I'll know... I'll have an explanation from him..."

Masami and Kae had sad expressions. They held each other's hands and closed their eyes for a moment, reopening them soon.

"We won't stop you from doing what you think is best," Masami told him.

"We'll be here for you, in case you need us," Kae added.

Koushirou smiled.

When he went to his bedroom, the boy picked his phone and dialed Sora's number. _Stay calm, don't alarm her, don't let her notice anything..._ Koushirou told himself as he waited for her to pick up.

"Hello?" Sora said at the other side of the line.

"Good afternoon, Sora-san!" Koushirou greeted. "How are you? Have you talked to your father?"

Koushirou was trying to be polite before asking her to arrange a meeting between him and her father. He didn't expect Sora to know anything about the situation.

"Koushirou-kun, I know..." Sora had a sad tone. "My parents told me everything."

Koushirou gulped. She couldn't mean what he thought.

"W-What are you talking about, Sora-san?"

"I know that aunt Ame was your mother and that my father didn't want to take you in..." Sora told him in a pained voice. "And I know that you know... I... I was going to visit you and talk about it and saw you and Taichi... I heard your conversation! I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to do that! I'm sorry my Dad... I'm so sorry about everything, Koushirou-kun!"

Koushirou sat on his bed, shaking. Sora knew the truth about her father. She sounded so distressed, so upset...

"Sora-san, please, don't beat yourself over it! It's not your fault!" Koushirou pleaded. "You weren't supposed to know about any of this! I'm sorry!"

"Of course I'm supposed to know! It's about my family!"

"I didn't want you to see your father in a different way!"

"I don't regret knowing!" Sora stated. "Of course I'm upset about what he did to you... it breaks my heart! But it's always best to know the truth! So, stop worrying about me, okay?"

"Okay..." Koushirou muttered, feeling terrible about Sora. He wondered if her relationship with her father had been ruined because of him. That possibility filled him with guilt.

"Are you feeling better, Koushirou-kun?" Sora asked. "When you were talking to Taichi, you seemed so sad... my Dad made you so sad... I'm so sorry!"

Koushirou felt like crying. Sora didn't deserve to go through such a heartbreak. She had always been kind, sweet and caring to everybody. To listen to her saying she was sorry for something her father had done was breaking Koushirou's heart.

"I'm better now! I'm great! Please, don't worry!" Koushirou tried to sound happy.

"There's no way that's true! Please, don't lie to me!" Sora said back. "How are you really feeling?"

Koushirou thought about that question. He knew he wasn't feeling as bad as before, thanks to Taichi's help. However, he wasn't feeling great either. After crying, Koushirou felt as if a weight had been lifted from him, leaving a hole in its place. There was an overall sadness, but he mainly felt tired and empty. His thoughts regarding Haruhiko were all over the place. There were angry ones, sad ones and even guilty ones. And there was a part of Koushirou that hoped that things could work out between them and all the bad feelings would disappear.

"I don't know how to explain how I'm feeling," Koushirou replied. "But I really am better than I was before."

"Okay..." Sora muttered. "I think it's the same for me. I talked to him again a few minutes ago..."

"To your father?" Koushirou asked in low voice, feeling his heart sink.

"Yes..." Sora confirmed. "He's really ashamed of what he did to you... he called himself a coward and weak... and selfish... he said that you reminded him too much of aunt Ame... Koushirou-kun, he doesn't have a problem with you properly. Dad sees his sister when he looks at you and that causes him immense pain. It's his problem. None of that is your fault or your responsibility."

Koushirou shed a couple of tears hearing that, but wasn't sure why. He didn't even know if what Sora told him made him feel better or worse.

"Sora-san... do you think your father would want to meet me and talk?" Koushirou asked.

"He was afraid you wouldn't want to talk to him after learning the truth," Sora said. "Are you sure you want to see him this soon? If you need more time..."

"It's okay, I want to talk to him."

"Okay, then. Do you think you could come over tomorrow? I can give you my address."

"That would be great. Thank you, Sora-san!"

"Koushirou-kun..." Sora hesitated.

"What is it?" Koushirou asked.

"After you talk to him... it doesn't have to be on the same day, but... I'd like to talk to you face to face as well... about how our relationship is going to be from now on."

"You... don't want to be my friend anymore?" Koushirou asked, worried.

"It's not that!" Sora let him know. "I want to stay friends with you but our relationship is going to change-"

"It doesn't have to change, we could still be like we've always been!"

"Now we know we're cousins, Koushirou-kun," Sora told him. "I can't pretend that things are the same as before. I'll understand if you can't see me as family, though. After what my father did, I can't expect you to-"

"How I feel about your father has nothing to do with how I feel about you, Sora-san," Koushirou stated. "You're my friend and one of the best people I know! I like you a lot! I... I don't know how our relationship is going to be from now on... I don't know yet if I can see you as my cousin or only as my friend but I know that I don't want to lose you! I'd like to still have you in my life, Sora-san! That would make me really happy!"

Sora didn't reply immediately, which worried Koushirou. When she talked again, her voice sounded happier:

"I'd like to still have you in my life as well, Koushirou-kun!"

Koushirou smiled. He was relieved to know that, no matter what happened between him and Haruhiko the next day, his relationship with Sora wouldn't end.

"See you tomorrow, Koushirou-kun!"

"See you, Sora-san!"

  
  



	9. Close

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Uncle and nephew talk at last.

The boy arrived way before the time. He could hear, through the closed door of the Takenouchi apartment, Sora's voice. She was talking to her parents, but Koushirou couldn't really understand what they were saying.

He stood there, feeling too awkward to knock on the door. The boy looked down, glancing at the orange shirt with short leaves and the jeans pants he was wearing. Perhaps he should have dressed more formally, but Koushirou didn't know what kind of attire was expected for a conversation with the uncle who had abandoned him.

Thinking about that still made his heart ache, no matter how hard he tried to be reasonable. In the end, Koushirou was still assaulted by deep sadness whenever he thought about the man's rejection.

Suddenly, Sora opened the door. Startled, Koushirou took a step backwards. The girl was wearing a white sleeveless shirt and blue pants.

"Koushirou-kun, you're here already?" she sounded surprised. "Did you just arrive?"

"Y-yeah..." he lied. "I couldn't really stay at home any longer..."

"Anxious, huh?" Sora guessed. "I'm taking my phone with me, so you can call me if you need."

"Taking your phone...? Are you going out?" Koushirou asked.

"Mom invited me to go out with her. She thinks that you and Dad should talk alone," Sora explained. "But if you want me to stay-"

"No, please!" Koushirou declined. "I'm going to be okay! Please, don't worry about me!"

Sora gave him a sad look and said:

"How could I not worry about you? I care a lot about you, Koushirou-kun!"

Those words warmed his heart. Ever since the day they first met, Sora had always been kind to him. She was kind to everybody, but, due to their particular circumstances, it would be understandable if she started to avoid him. Instead, Sora worried about the boy and wanted to make sure he was okay.

Despite his complicated feelings towards her father, a new feeling began to bloom in the boy's heart. It was like a sense of pride for knowing that he was related to such a wonderful person. After Taichi, Sora was the friend he admired the most.

"Listen, Sora-san..." Koushirou began to say. "I think that... I mean... if you... I want you to know that you can drop honorifics with me if you find it odd to keep calling me 'Koushirou-kun' after knowing we're... I mean... whatever you find best!"

Sora studied him with a serious expression for half a minute.

"Listen..." she spoke in a soft tone and showed him a small smile, "I'd love to call you without honorifics, but I don't want to do that without being sure that you're okay with it."

"Plenty of people don't use honorifics with me!" Koushirou stated.

"And yet, you use them with everyone," Sora contested. "I don't want to be just another person who treats you casually while you're still formal to me. It wouldn't feel right."

"Then..." Koushirou hesitated. "You're saying that you would only do that if I dropped honorifics first?"

Koushirou would be lying if he said he didn't wish to drop honorifics with the people he was closest to in his life. Although he had been learning to act more naturally and be more honest, the honorifics were still a wall he couldn't take down. When would he feel safe enough and close enough to someone to finally stop using them?

"Please, don't take that as pressure! I don't want to make you feel pressured or anything like that!" Sora assured. "It's okay if we keep treating each other with honorifics if it makes you more comfortable!"

"I-I understand! Please, don't worry!" Koushirou told her.

Then, Sora's mother approached the door. She was wearing black pants and a social purple blouse. Koushirou wasn't sure if he had seen her before. The woman, who had been given him a guilty look, bowed to the boy.

"I am immensely sorry!" she said. "I should've done more for you! If I had been more insistent with my husband... I'm so sorry! I should have taken care of you!"

"M-Mom..." Sora muttered, looking sadly at her mother's trembling body.

"P-Please, don't apologize!" Koushirou pleaded. "I-It's okay-"

"Of course what I did was not okay!" the woman affirmed, straightening her posture. "When I wrong someone, the only honorable courses of actions are to apologize and to be better. I can't erase my mistakes from the past, but I promise you I'll be here for you, whenever you need."

It felt strange to have an adult apologize to him, especially in a such a serious manner. Unsure about how to react, Koushirou bowed and thanked her. Both Sora and her mother smiled.

Koushirou entered the apartment, leaving his snickers close to the door at the same time that Sora and her mother put their shoes on. They shared good-byes before leaving. Sora closed the door.

Koushirou turned around and saw Takenouchi Haruhiko standing in the middle of the corridor. The man was wearing social brown pants and a long-sleeved light blue shirt with buttons. He looked at the boy with apprehension and guilt, but didn't avert his eyes.

"I prepared some tea and rice balls... they're in the living room..." Haruhiko's voice was low and hesitant, as if he was afraid of something. "We could talk there if you want... or it could be somewhere else... wherever you find it better..."

"It's okay, we can go there," Koushirou told him. He wasn't hungry or thirsty, but he thought it would be rude to decline.

On the short-legged table in the living room, there was a tea pot between two empty cups and a large plate with at least fifteen rice balls. Koushirou and Haruhiko kneeled on a pillow each, across from each other. Haruhiko immediately offered to pour tea for the boy; Koushirou accepted, quickly taking a sip of it.

"It's delicious!" Koushirou complimented.

"Thank you..." Haruhiko said back. His expression was still serious and his movements were rigid.

Koushirou took a rice ball and waited for the adult to talk first. After almost two minutes, the man finally said:

"I'm sorry."

Was that it? Did Koushirou go there to hear an apology that consisted of only two words? There had to be more than that! Nevertheless, Haruhiko remained silent.

Koushirou could feel that familiar anger burning his insides again. How could he say just that after all the heartache he had put the boy through? After abandoning him? Did he even take a look at Koushirou before making that decision, more than a decade before? Did he at least know who was going to take care of the boy?

"Did you know my parents back then?" Koushirou inquired in a controlled voice. "The Izumis, I mean. Did you know them?"

"I saw them a couple of times," Haruhiko answered. "They seemed nice."

"Then, you didn't actually know them..." Koushirou murmured, focusing on the rice ball he was still holding. "Did you talk to them before...?"

"My wife talked to them... she was convinced that they were indeed good people and would take care of you..." Haruhiko replied, smiling at the other. "You seem to be a healthy child... and you're also very polite. They really did take good care of you, didn't they?"

"They did..." Koushirou confirmed in low voice, looking at the cup of tea instead of the man.

"I'm glad!" Haruhiko told him. "I knew... I was sure that you would be better off without me! I'm glad that really was the case!"

Koushirou placed the rice ball back on the plate. It was getting harder to keep his burning emotions under control.

"You never bothered to check on them or to check on me," Koushirou stated, glaring at Haruhiko. "All this time, you just hoped that I'd be okay and yet you did nothing to be sure of it... you let two people you didn't know adopt your nephew! It's true that I grew up with two loving parents, but what if I wasn't that lucky? What if they were neglectful or treated me badly? You would never know!"

"Toshiko-san talked to them!" Haruhiko said. "She made sure-"

"But you didn't talk to them! You didn't check on them! You didn't do anything!" Koushirou accused. "If it wasn't for your wife... i-if the Izumis hadn't offered to... what would have happened to me? What would you have let happen to me...?"

Koushirou could feel the tears coming and closed his eyes. He didn't want to cry in front of that man.

"I understand that my behavior was inexcusable..." Haruhiko's voice was filled with shame. "When I lost my sister... it was a huge shock to me. I wouldn't leave my room, I wouldn't eat... I couldn't even pay attention to my surroundings... I kept waiting for Ame to appear and tell me that everything had been a huge misunderstanding... but she never came. I thought that agony would surely kill me. It got to a point..." he sobbed "... to think of her became unbearable to me. I was in no conditions of doing anything. And I know how awful it sounds but I couldn't stand the idea of having you around... you would be a living reminder of her absence... to be near you would break my heart every day!"

Koushirou opened his eyes and looked at the man. Haruhiko had several tears streaming down his face and was sobbing loudly.

"I'm sorry I was weak and selfish!" Haruhiko continued. "I'm sorry I ran from my responsibilities! I'm horrible! Despicable! I failed both you and my sister! I'm sorry! I'm so deeply sorry! I-If you can ever forgive me... if you let me, I'll do everything to make things right between us. I know I can't change the past and that you have every right not to want me in your life, but if you allow me... I promise I will never fail you again!"

Haruhiko bowed to him.

Koushirou could feel his anger dissipating.

"Isn't my presence still bothersome to you?" the boy asked. "When we first met, you couldn't even look at me."

Haruhiko straightened his posture and looked at Koushirou. The tears were still falling, but he didn't look away.

"I was afraid of seeing her in you," Haruhiko explained. "That fear was so great, I didn't even pay attention to how you looked like. Now that I'm looking at you, I'm noticing a few things."

"What things?" Koushirou asked.

Haruhiko smiled before answering:

"Your eyes are black. Not brown, like hers. Your hair is the same color as hers, but Ame's was straight, not spiky. Her eyebrows were also different. It's funny..." Haruhiko smirked, "... as it turns out, you resemble Shunsui-san way more than Ame. If I had noticed that sooner... if I had paid attention to you..."

The man frowned.

"There's no point in imagining how things could have been different. We can't change the past," Koushirou said. "Imagining alternative versions of my life never brought me happiness."

"You... did that a lot?" Haruhiko inquired.

"In the beginning, after I overheard my parents talking about my adoption," Koushirou informed. "Imagining what had happened to my other parents... wondering if they had died or abandoned me or something else... doing that only made me feel worse. It got to a point when I couldn't bear to think about it anymore and tried to escape. Because of that, I dedicated most of my time to the computer."

"That wasn't a bad way to escape from your torment..." Haruhiko told the boy. "You never abandoned anyone who needed you. Nor did you move to another town, away from your wife and daughter. Sora told me about how you were always helping your friends in the Digital World... she had lost count of how many times you saved them. Koushirou, you never let your pain stop you from doing the right thing and helping others. You're very strong and admirable... and immensely kind!"

Koushirou usually felt uncomfortable when people praised him. However, to hear those words from his uncle touched his heart. Even though he intellectually knew he didn't need Haruhiko's approval, it still made him happy. The feeling of rejection the boy had carried with him for so long was finally being replaced by something more pleasant. He was being filled with peace.

"There's something I would like to ask..." Koushirou muttered. "My parents knew my father better than my mother, so I've heard more stories about him. If it's not bothersome, could you please tell me things about her? What kind of person was she? What did she like to do?"

Haruhiko stared at him with a serious expression. Koushirou thought he was going to deny his request. It was a hurtful subject for him, after all. To his surprise, Haruhiko smiled at him.

"Of course! I can tell you everything! Where do I start? Let's see..." Haruhiko said, putting a hand under his chin, "I think I should start from the beginning. She was born during a storm when I was five years old. I've always wondered if that was the reason why she liked lightening and thunder so much."

Koushirou smiled largely after hearing that. He liked those things as well.

The boy didn't feel the hours passing by him as he listened to the stories Haruhiko had about his mother. The woman who used to be nothing more than an abstract idea was becoming more real after each word he listened about her.

Koushirou didn't notice the return of Sora and her mother until they were both in the living room, surprised to see them still talking. That was also when the boy realized he had eaten most of the rice balls on the plate. Toshiko invited him to stay for lunch. Koushirou thanked her, but said that he had to go home because his parents were waiting for him. Before the boy stood up, Haruhiko picked a pen and a paper from his pocket and wrote something down.

"My cellphone number and my e-mail," Haruhiko said as he gave the paper to his nephew. "If you ever want to talk more, please contact me."

"Thank you!" Koushirou said back, smiling.

Sora accompanied the boy to the door.

"It seems that things went well between the two of you!" Sora commented while Koushirou put his snickers on. He didn't remember ever seeing her that happy.

"To be honest, I was afraid of how things would turn out..." Koushirou confessed. "I'm glad I took the risk and talked to him."

"I had the feeling you would get along well with him!" Sora said, beaming at the boy.

Koushirou was so happy, it felt strange. It was as if he was made of warmth and tranquility at that moment. He was closer to Sora than ever before. That proximity didn't scare him nor did it make him anxious. He felt at peace and safe in her presence. Koushirou didn't want that feeling to ever fade away.

"Let's hang out more times during this summer," Koushirou proposed. "It could be with Taichi-san and Yamato-san or just the two of us. I'd like... it'd make me happy if I could spend more time with you."

"I would love that!" Sora told him.

Koushirou crossed the door, but he didn't want to leave yet. There was still something he wanted to do. One last risk to take, one last wall to destroy... he could feel it in his reach for the first time and decided to act before his courage disappeared. He turned to face the girl one last time, took a deep breath and said:

"See you soon, Sora!"

She was shocked at first, but it didn't last long. Her eyes soon became brimmed with happy tears as a huge smile took over her face.

"See you soon, Koushirou!"

The two cousins would meet many times during that summer and after it. For the rest of their lives, they would be there for each other.

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for the comments and the kudos!


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